hansen



Feb. 21, 1956 A. A. HANSEN 2-735,121

WALL SUPPORTED SHOE HOLDER AND STRETCHER Filed March 1, 1955 2Sheets-Sheet l Int/enjo 1Q rzwol ,4 Hansen K j aL Feb. 21, 1956 A. A.HANSEN 2,735,121

WALL SUPPORTED SHOE HOLDER AND STRETCHER Filed March 1, 1955 2Sheets-Sheet 2 jzzz/eni'oq- Qrnacifl A arqse United States Patent 6 WALLSUPPORTED SHOE HOLDER AND STRETCHER Arnold A. Hansen, Des Plaines, Ill.Application March 1, 1955, Serial No. 491,247

Claims. (Cl. 12-128.6)

This invention relates to combined shoe holders and stretchers and moreparticularly to a combined shoe holder and stretcher which is capable ofeffectively holding shoes for shining, cleaning and the like, andstretching shoes of widely varying sizes and previous conditions ofstretch.

Prior to this invention, shoe holders of this general type wereinadequate in that the mechanical means employed for holding a shoe of apredetermined size or stretching a shoe to a predetermined size werecapable of only stepby-step adjustment. These prior art devices werefurther characterized in that a pair of arms was provided one of whichwas movable and was fastened in a predetermined position of adjustmentby a frictional contact of a limited area. Furthermore, in these priorart devices the force necessary to hold or stretch a shoe was suppliedalmost entirely by the user. While devices of this type were known whichprovided for selective mounting of a plurality of shoe trees toaccommodate shoes of varying characteristics, none of the trees could beconveniently mounted or replaced because of the use of thumbscrews andthe like. A disadvantage of these devices is that they are cumbersome inoperation, and the shoe tree is often inadvertently removed with theshoe.

Accordingly, a principal object of the invention is to provide acombined shoe holder and stretcher in which means are provided forholding securely shoes of varying sizes and for stretching a shoe to apredetermined desired size.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of the statedtype in which a plurality of shoe trees of varying conformations areselectively mountable with ease and convenience.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device of the statedcharacter which may be manufactured economically and which ischaracterized by resistance to periodic stresses and strains incident tothe buffeting motions employed in shining operations.

A more particular object of the invention is to provide a device of thementioned type which includes a bracket adapted to be aifixed to a wallor other vertical surface, a bracket arm removably attached to thebracket, a shoe tree releasably attached to the bracket arm, anelongated screw rotatably mounted on the bracket arm, a heel postthreadably arranged on the screw, and a heel plate aifixed to the heelpost for engaging the heel portion of a shoe, the front end of which ismounted on the shoe tree. By this arrangement, shoes may be mounted in amanner that all parts are readily accessible. The forepart of thebracket arm is formed with a knee from which extends vertically a footportion which then curves outwardly to form a support for the tree. Whenthe tree is in position for use, the shoe mounted thereon is securelysupported from toe to heel.

These and other objects, advantages and features of the presentinvention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from thefollowing description taken inconjunction with ice the accompanyingdrawings in which similar reference characters relate to similar parts,and in which:

Fig. 1 is an elevationaal view, partly in section and partly broken awayfor the sake of clarity, of a combined shoe holder and stretcher made inaccordance with the present invention;

Fig. la is a view in perspective of the bracket of Fig. 1;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the device of Fig. 1, broken away in part toshow the details of certain of the elements;

Fig. 3 is an elevational view of the bracket arm of the combined shoeholder and stretcher of the present inven tion, and a pair of shoe treesof varying sizes each of which may be selectively mounted thereon;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged elevational view, in section, taken substantiallyon line 44 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is an elevational view in section, taken substantially on line5-5 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially on line 6-6 ofFig. 1;

Fig. 7 is an elevational view, partly in section, of a mod ified form ofthe present invention;

Fig. 8 is a plan view, partly broken away for the sake of clarity, ofthe form of the invention shown in Fig. 7;

Fig. 9 is an elevational view, partly in section, of another modifiedform of the present invention;

Fig. 10 is an enlarged elevational view, in section, taken substantiallyon line 10-10 of Fig. 9; and

Fig. 11 is an enlarged fragmentary elevational view of the bracket armof the form of the invention shown in Fig. 9.

With reference to the drawings and more particularly to Fig. l, thecombined shoe holder and stretcher of the present invention comprisesessentially a bracket 10 adapted to be secured by means of screws 11 toa wall or other 'vertical surface, a tapered socket 12 forming a part ofthe bracket, a bracket arm 13 having at one end a flange 14' tapered tocorrespond to the shape of the socket 12 and at the other end anintegrally formed foot portion 14 upon which are selectively mounted aplurality of shoe trees 15, a heel post 16 movable longitudinally of thebracket arm 13 by means of an elongated screw 17 which is actuatable bya knurled knob 18.

According to the present invention, means are provided for efiicientlyand effectively substituting one shoe tree for another so that shoes ofwidely varying characteristics maybe accommodated. To this end, the footportion 14 is constructed and arranged slidably to receive a shoe treein a manner that engagement and disengagement of these elements arereadily effected and relative displacement while in use is precluded. Inparticular, the foot portion 14, which like the bracket arm 13 is ofchannel cross-section extends vertically from a knee 13 formed at theouter end of the bracket arm, and then outwardly to form a support forone of the shoe trees 15, and is provided with depending parallel arms19 and 22. Advantageously, the construction of foot portion 14 and ofthe shoe tree 15 is such that the tree may be extended to a suflicientheight for it to form a backing and support for the tongue andupper lastof the shoe, thereby facilitating cleaning and shining these shoeportions. Extending inwardly from the arms 19 and 22 are a pair offlanges 23 and 24. At one end of each of the flanges 23 and 24 is formeda tang 25 which extends substantially perpendicularly to the plane ofthe flanges. The gap between the tangs 25 is sufiiciently narrow topermit the forming of an aperture 26, as best shown in Figs. 2 and 4. Aspring clip.v 27 has aportion 28 secured to the tangs ,25 by means of afastening element 29 received in the aperture 26. Portion 32 of the clip27 is normally spaced from flanges 23 and 24 to permit the insertion ofa channel section 35 hereafter described.

Desirably,-the shoe trees 15 are of two sizes, one size for womens andchildrens shoes, and a larger size for mens shoes, as best shown inFigs. 3. Each of the trees 15 is provided with a transversely extendingstructural member 34 having a channel section 35; whose internaldimensions" correspond substantially to the external portion of the footportion 14;: so'that the latter may be inserted into the former. Theouter ends of the member 34' are providedwith depending-flanges 36 forsecuring the member in position on the inner surface of the shell ofthe' tree. The foot portion 14 fits snugly within the channel 35 and isretained in this'position by the spring clip 27, as will be understood.To relieve the clip 27 of the forces resulting from the pressureemployed to shine the shoes, ridges 35a are formed throughout the lengthof the channel sectiong35, and eomplementary grooves 19a and 220: areformed in the'arms 19 and 22 respectively, corresponding in length tosaid ridges 35a.

The details of the bracket 10 are shown clearly in Fig. la. This bracketis of unitary construction and in,- cludes a tapered base plate 10,having extensions 10a at the side edges which form the tapered socket12. To permit easy reception of the flange 14' in the socket 12 even inthe event that some of the screws 11 are not properly seated, a pair ofembossments 12a are formed in the base plate 10 to maintain the flange14' in spaced relation to the surface of the base plate 10.

With reference now to Figs. 1, and 6, the screw 17 is centrally mountedwithin the channel of the bracket arm 13 by means of an L-shaped bracket37, which is apertured forreception of one end of the screw. The screwis provided with a shoulder at each end toprevent axial movement eitherto the right or to the left as viewed in Fig. 1. portion 38 shaped toconform to the configuration of the channel of the bracket arm 13; Bythis arrangement, rotation of the heel post with respect to the bracketarm 13 is prevented. The head portion 38 is provided with a threadedaperture for reception of the screw 17, as

will be understood. The heel post 16 is formed integrally with the headportion 38, and is threaded at its lower end for reception of the heelplate 39, which is shaped to conform to the inside of the heel of theaverage shoe. By this arrangement, the heel post 16 may be moved to theright as viewed in Fig. l, by turning the hand knob 18, and the heelplate 39 may be moved with respect to the heel post 16 to accommodateshoes of varying heel heights.

In operation, the spring clip 27 is first manually depressed, and thenthe channel 35 of the cross-member 34 is aligned with the channel of thefoot portion 14'. The tree is then moved to the right, as viewed in Fig.1, until the limiting position is reached, at which position the springclip 27 returns to its normal position, with the result that the hook 33functions as a locking device to retain the tree on the foot portion. Ashoe may be mounted on the present device by positioning the shoe withthe hands so that the tree enters the toe section and forepart of theshoe as far as it goes, then pulling the rear part of the shoe up sothat the heel plate 39 engages the inside of the shoe at the heel. Theshoe is then held momentarily with one hand while the knurled knob 18 isrotated with the other hand. Turning of the hand knob advances the heelpost to the right, thus effecting tightening of the shoe with itsforepart and heel stretched respectively between the tree and the heelpo's't. Shoufd stretching be desired; the screw 17 is merely advanced apredetermined distance; The tree is readily removable by depressing hook33 and moving the tree to the left as viewed in Fig. 1.

p In Figs. 7 and 8 is shown a modified form of the invention in which aspring clip 27a is provided which is substantially tilshaped inconfiguration, and which is provid'ed at each end with a hook 33a. Thearms 1'9 and 22 The heel post 16 is provided with a head 4. t of thefoot portion 14 are apertured at 42 for reception of the hooks 33a. Inthis instance, the walls of the channel 35 are correspondingly aperturedso that the ends of the hooks 33a may protrude therethrough. In thisform of the invention there is no need to depress the clip 27a to mountthe tree. The tree is merely brought into alignment and urged intoengagement with the foot portion. The sides of the channel 35 ride upover the sloping portions 33a of the clip as the spring deflectsinwardly. To removethe tree, the hooks 33a are depressed inwardly tofree them from engagement with apertures 42-; and the tree is removedasbefore.

With reference now to Figs.'9,- l0 and l-l, the form of theinventiondisclosed in these figures comprises an integrallyformed-bracket arm 13a; having a solid foot portion 14a. A spring clip27, of the type utilized in the form of the invention shown in Fig. l,is secured in position by a fastening element 29a. Ridges 35a are formedin the mouth of channel 35,-;as he'reinbefore" described,

and complementary grooves 148:, similar to greoves 1922 and 220, areformed'i'n solid-foot portion l4a-to-relieve clip 27" of pressure whichmay result when shining the shoes: The main portion of the bracket arm13b is channel-shaped and includes an integral bracket 37a apertured forthe reception of theelongatedscrewa In the above described invention acombined shoe holder and stretcher is provided in whichshoe trees ofdifferent sizes may readily be mounted and dismounted for theaccommodation of shoes of different sizes. The provision of the screwmechanism permits a great number of gradations of the heel post withrespect to the foot portion; By this arrangement, shoes of differentsizes maybe held-in position for shining on cleaning, and shoes may bestretched toa'ny'desi'red' size. The heel plate 39 isdesirablythreadably mounted on the heel post 16, so that it may be readily raisedto a' position to accommodate shoes of the high heel type. Thisinvention may be embodied in constructionswhichdiifer in many respectsand details from the particular embodiments disclosed. Othermodifications which do not go beyond the scope of the invention willreadily project themselvesto those skilledinthe art. It is, therefore,not intended that the invention be limited to the exact constructionshown and described, but only to the inventiveconcept as defined in theappended claims.

I claim:

1. A combined shoe holder and stretcher comprising, in combination, amounting bracket adapted to be attached to a wall or other verticalsurface, a bracket arm of channel cross-section removably secured tosaid bracket, an elongated screw rotatably mounted within said bracketarm, said bracket arm having a foot portion of channel construction, apair of inwardly directed fiangesformed integrally with said footportion, a tang extending perpendicularly to each of said flanges, ashoe tree mounted on said foot portion,-a spring clip secured to saidfangs and operative to retain said shoe t'ree in position for use, and aheel post threadably mounted on said screw and operative upon rotationof said screw firmly to grasp a shoe for shining, cleaning or the like.

2. A combined sh'oe holder and stretcher comprising, in combination, amounting bracket adapted to be attach'ed to a' wall or other verticalsurface, a' bracket arm of channel cross-section removably secured tosaid bracket, an elongated screw rotatably mounted within said bracketarm, said bracket are having a foot portion of channel construction, apair of inwardly directed flanges formed integrally with said footportion, a pair otgrooves in said foot portion, a shoe tree mounted onsaid foot portion, said shoe tree including a transversely extendingstructural member having a' centrally disposed channel in which the footportion is received, said structural member being provided with ridgesat the mouth of the centrally disposed channel complementary to saidgrooves and corresponding in length thereto, atang eitendingperpendicularly to each of said flanges, a spring clip secured to saidtangs and operative to retain said shoe tree in position for use, and aheel post threadably mounted on said screw and operative upon rotationof said screw firmly to grasp a shoe for shining, cleaning or the like.

3. A combined shoes holder and stretcher for use with a wall mountedsupporting bracket, comprising: a bracket arm of channel cross-sectionremovably secured at one end to said bracket; an elongated screwrotatably mounted Within said bracket arm; means whereby said screw isrotated; a knee portion at the other end of said bracket arm; a footportion of channel cross-section extending downwardly and outwardly fromsaid knee portion; a shoe tree; a centrally disposed channel on theunderside of said shoe tree for slidably receiving said foot portion innested relationship; a pair of grooves, one in each leg of the channelcross-section forming said foot portion and coextensive with the lengththereof; a pair of ridges at the mouth of the centrally disposedchannel, complementary to said grooves, corresponding in length thereto,and cooperable therewith whereby said tree is secured against accidentaldislodgment by pressure applied perpendicularly thereto; a spring clipconnected with the channel of said foot portion and operative on saidcentrally disposed channel whereby said tree is secured against slidingoff said foot portion; means whereby said clip is operable to releasesaid tree from said foot portion; a heel post threadably mounted on saidscrew; and a heel plate threadably mounted on said heel post wherebyshoes of various heel heights may be firmly engaged by said heel plateand tree for shining, cleaning or the like.

4. A combined shoe holder and stretcher comprising: a bracket mountableon a vertical surface; a bracket arm removably secured at one end tosaid bracket; an elongated screw rotatably mounted in said bracket arm;means whereby said screw is rotated; a foot portion at the other end ofsaid bracket arm, said foot portion formed with a pair of grooves, oneon each side thereof and corresponding in length thereto; a shoe tree; acentrally disposed channel on the underside of said shoe tree forslidably receiving said foot portion; a pair of ridges at the mouth ofsaid channel, one for each of said grooves, corresponding in lengththereto, and cooperable there- With to retain said tree on said footportion despite the application of downward pressure on said tree; astop on said foot portion limiting the slidable positioning of said treethereon; a spring clip connected with said foot portion and operative onsaid channel to retain said tree against sliding off said foot portion;means whereby said clip is operable to release said tree from said footportion; and a heel post threadably mounted on said screw and operativeupon the rotation of said screw firmly to grasp a shoe for shining,cleaning or the like.

5. A combined shoe holder and stretcher comprising: a bracket mountableon a vertical surface; a bracket arm removably secured at one end tosaid bracket; an elongated screw rotatably mounted in said bracket arm;means whereby said screw is rotated; a foot portion of channelcross-section fixed to the other end of said bracket arm; a shoe tree; acentrally disposed member of channel cross-section carried on theunderside of said shoe tree; retaining means on said foot portion, saidretaining means having parallel walls forming a substantially horizontaltrack to guide said member thereon; rail means on said member,corresponding in length to said retaining means, and cooperabletherewith whereby said tree is horizontally slidably guided onto saidfoot portion and secured against accidental dislodgment and lateralturning by pressure applied perpendicularly thereto; a spring clipconnected with said foot portion and operative on the channel of saidtree whereby said tree is releasably secured against sliding from saidfoot portion; and a heel post threadably mounted on said screw andoperative upon rotation of said screw firmly to grasp a shoe forshining, cleaning or the like.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS795,871 Watson Aug. 1, 1905 830,632 Anderson Sept. 11, 1906 1,862,600Long June 14, 1932 2,170,754 Gregory Aug. 22, 1939

